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Released by: Animeigo
Released on: 2/1/2011
Director: Kenji Misumi
Cast: Raizo Ichikawa
Year: 1965/1966
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The Movies:
Based on a popular series of Japanese novels, the Sleepy Eyes Of Death films follow a nihilist ronin named Nemuri Kyoshiro. While the initial wave of films began with three entries that were made by Toho between 1956 and 1958 and starred Koji Tsuruta in the lead role, the better known wave began in 1963 with The Chinese Jade. The first to feature popular actor Ichikawa Raizo in the role, Daiei Studios would have the actor return eleven more times before his all too early death in 1969. Animeigo released the first four films of the sixties/Raizo run on DVD a couple of years ago and is now returning to the well with the next four entries in the series. Here's a look:
Sword of Fire:
Picking up more or less where the fourth film in the series left off, we once again catch up with Kyoshiro Nemuri, a bastard samurai and the master of the deadly 'Full Moon Cut,' a move so lethal it leaves few in its path. As he's travelling to Tokyo he meets a woman in the midst of a deadly knife fight with a strange man. Against his better judgment, he intervenes and he winds up involved in a plot which will land him on the wrong side of the Todo Clan involving stolen treasure that belongs to the Shogun himself.
The Todo Clan's retainer uses the women that Kyoshiro met against him in order to manipulate the swordsman and get rid of anyone who will interfere with his acquisition of the treasure, but the gang of pirates who stole it in the first place aren't about to let it go without a fight.
Chock full of untrustworthy backstabbing characters and fantastic sword play, Sword Of Fire kicks off this second set of films with a bang and turns out to be a ridiculously enjoyable movie. Koyshiro's typically bad ass self is once again thrust into a subset of society he really doesn't want anything to do with and this gives him the opportunity to spout of various bits of cynical wisdom here and there in addition to using his trademark move on any unlucky types who might get in his way. Raizo Ichikawa's cold stare and emotionless portrayal of the character work perfectly and the camera work in this particular entry is very strong, using lots of long and medium distance shots to set the mood before going in for the close up in a style seemingly influenced by Sergio Leone.
Sword of Satan:
The second film in the set (and sixth in the series) is, if not the best in the series, damn close to it and probably one of the better known (it's been bootlegged a fair bit). When it begins, Nemuri is approached by a woman who offers to sell herself to him for the night. He agrees and when they get back to her place, she puts on a Noh mask. He asks her to take it off and then leaves, paying her but not doing the deed. He later finds out she killed herself and then later winds up on the wrong side of a different woman named Orin, the sister of a man he killed some time ago. Orin, understandably, wants vengeance, and things get more complicated when Nemuri finds out that the dead prostitute from earlier in the story has left him some money and her mask in her will.
Enter Tsurumatsu, a five year old boy who the prostitute was caring for who winds up being a pawn in Orin's revenge plot. As the story moves forward, all the subplots come together in clever ways and Nemuri once again finds himself in some hot water.
As grim as you'd expect, we're once again put into a world full of bastards and miscreants with Nemuri in the thick of it all. There's a welcome air of unpredictability this time around that makes this one a joy to watch and the stylish cinematography nicely compliments the sense of menace and impending bloodshed.
The Mask of The Princess:
Bringing back a character from the first set, this film begins when the insane daughter of the Shogun decides to track Nemuri down and cut his head off for what he did to her in that earlier chapter. Nemuri, meanwhile, is trying to track down the Izutsu Family and is surprised to find that the fifteen year old girl he's just been offered is part of that same family. A mysterious character named Kiku is trying very hard to get Nemuri's attention, but why? It all has to do with the Shogun's crazy daughter and her revenge plot, which turns out to have deep ties to some of the people Nemuri has been trying to get involved with for his own reasons - but he's soon set up when the women in the town start turning up dead with notes attached blaming Nemuri for molesting them.
A bit more political than previous entries, this episode proves that power can corrupt and that those without fear of punishment can and will do what they please to whomever they choose. The Shogun's daughter is a great villain, her part played with plenty of enthusiasm and vigor, while Raizo Ichikawa's Eastwood-esque/tall dark and silent type performance is once again the living embodiment of cool. It all leads up to a bloody finale with a couple of great twists thrown in that you will not see coming. A subplot involving a young swordsman who wants to learn from Nemuri also adds further depth to his character, particularly when he turns this student away.
Sword of Villainy:
Last but not least, a friend of Nemuri who makes his living as a hair dresser tells our ronin of a family in trouble. As our storyteller offers Nemuri a drink, the liquid turns out to be something entirely different and… well it just goes nuts from there but let it suffice to say that the very city of Edo itself is hanging in the balance and things definitely get pretty heavy for Nemuri before the film is over with.
A twisting maze of subplots keeps this one interesting right until the end, with various characters stabbing one another in the back and no one's motives being made clear at all until the big finish. It's quite a clever script that the filmmakers worked off of here, and this entry plays out as more of a mystery than a typical swordplay film.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The four films in the collection are all presented in their original 2.35.1 anamorphic widescreen aspect ratios and generally they look quite good here. There isn't much in the way of print damage, dirt or debris to get annoyed over and color reproduction looks quite lifelike, never overcooked or blown out. Skin tones look a little bit waxy in a couple of spots but this is an occasional problem rather than a constant, thankfully. A little bit of line shimmering can be seen here and there but these are minor complains, overall this is a nice looking set with strong detail and a clean, consistently strong picture quality.
Each film is presented in Japanese language Dolby Digital Mono with optional English subtitles. Animeigo has actually done a really impressive job with the subtitles here, allowing you to choose from 'dialogue only' subtitles or 'full subtitles' (meaning they translate signs and written pages as well as the spoken parts of the film) in either yellow or white text. Dialogue is crisp and clear and there are no problems with any hiss or distortion to note. The levels are all properly balanced and while the range is limited (understandable given that these are older pictures) overall things sound just fine, leaving no room for complaint.
Each of the four discs includes a selection of trailers for other Animeigo releases, production notes, a still gallery, animated menus and chapter selection. Inside the digipack that holds the four DVDs that make up this set is a nice full color booklet that contains a few essays and reviews that put the film's into historical context and provide some welcome background information on the time in Japanese history where they are set.
The Final Word:
If you dug the first set, then this is an essential purchase because it's as good, if not better, then that earlier batch of films. Animeigo's release is strong, with good picture and sound quality and if it's a bit light on extras, the quality of the films more than makes up for it.
